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Recent, Future and Proposed Projects
Frankie and Jimmy and the conclusion of Zombie series 2 CAW Studios’ founders Wes Veerman and Clayton Bambrough created a silent, black-and-white short film in April 2013 titled A Gentleman’s Game. It harkens back to silent film era, relying heavily on exaggerated facial expressions, over the top gestures, and overacting in general. They have expressed interest in developing these two characters for a series —Bambrough credited as Frankie Fraud and Veerman as Jimmy Jang —with both doing something which causes trouble in each episode. They also see these characters as existing throughout time, meaning there might be episodes set in the past, present, or future, but they will always behave the same no matter where they are, what they are doing, or when they are. A Gentleman’s Game was released at the end of April 2013. A second episode called A Farming Faux Pas was filmed within a week of the first, but due to a delay in post production, wasn't released until over a month later. Neither episode managed to be as successful as had been foreseen. Bambrough and Veerman worked on future episode concepts and are working on the development of further episodes. Veerman and Bambrough established they will film episodes in pairs, allowing time between to come up with plots and new costumes. It is not being produced as an episodic series, however, instead designed as a serial with self contained plots that always conclude by the end of the episode or at least don’t make it so viewers will have to have seen previous episodes to understand the latest one. Veerman has discussed wanting to do multiple part episodes farther down the road once the series becomes more established. CAW Studios announced after the release of Zombie Attack 5 (which leaves off on a cliff hanger like all previous entries) that Zombie Attack 6 will be the last official episode in the series. It will end with a less severe cliff hanger than had been previously seen, and be concluded/wrapped up in a seventh episode, which will be feature length and involve more than just Lacroix and Bambrough in the cast and crew. Tentatively planned for a summer shoot and fall release, Zombie Attack 7: the Final Attack, will be the last of this series of zombie movies, but according to them, not necessarily the last zombie movie they’ll ever make. Zombie Attack 6 was originally planned to be shot and released in May, so there would only be a month apart between the last episode and the newest episode. The script had already been completed, but less preparation had went into the production, which meant the script wasn't reworked and ended up being significantly longer than previous episodes. Filming took place over the course of three days, longer than any other shoot for a Flyball Studios film. Even though principal photography and all the special effects shots were completed well before the end of May, post-production was more complex than usual, setting the film back. Bambrough attributed this tedious edit to some sound overlay complexities and choosing the better camera angle, but mainly due to the constraints of Youtube uploader length, which only allows fifteen minute videos for their channel. The original cut of Zombie Attack 6 ran about 25 minutes. Bambrough worked to get it down to 22 minutes, then split it into two parts. Lacroix and Bambrough decided the episode would be released in a continuous two parts rather than as separate episodes, as the continuity wouldn't work and both halves were completed more or less at the same time. Zombie Attack 6 ''was released on June 10th, 2013. As had been predicted by the studio, the longer run time, more complex plot and two part structure made it less of an immediate hit compared with earlier episodes. Upcoming and Proposed Projects A sequel to ''Dawn of the Wolf was considered after principal photography, although the cliff hanger ending was designed more as a final scare than a hint at a second chapter. After careful consideration, the studios decided to move forward with a sequel, but wait until the following summer to shoot which would allow Bambrough the winter to work on a script. Flyball Studios and CAW Studios is planning to film not just part 2 this summer, but part 3 as well, doing them back to back and releasing both around Halloween. The working titles for 2 and 3 are Curse of the Wolf and Hunt for the Wolf, respectively. It is rumoured that Curse of the Wolf will not only continue the hunter’s struggle with his canine curse, but also introduce a vampire character and create a three way struggle between man, wolf and vampire which will be more fully explored in Hunt for the Wolf. The location for the films will be different than their predecessor, set to take place at a river very near the original location. Both features are being budgeted a bit higher than Dawn of the Wolf, with talk of constructing prosthetics and even a full wolf head to be operated via puppetry. The sequel to Hunt for Zaat is still being planned for a summer 2013 shoot. The third and final film will likely center on a rescue mission to LV 007 and their interaction with the native aliens. Early location scouting brought Veerman and Bambrough to a secluded part of a river near Veerman's home, which they both felt would make a suitable setting. It hasn't been confirmed as of yet where the film will be primarily shot. The previous two were shot entirely in Bambrough's own yard, as well as his basement. It will be unscripted like Hunt for Zaat was (Ghibli Alien Origins had a plot outline, but no actual script) and will this time feature Bambrough, Veerman, and Patten Brown in their respective roles as well as have them on board as the film crew, with only Veerman slated to direct. A documentary exclusively featuring wild life filmed at extreme close ups—particularly insects—is being filmed and will likely be released in early summer 2013. The working title is Macro Life, referring to the macro photography that makes up its length. It is being independently produced by CAW Studios and directed by Bambrough. A film utilizing Lego’s Bionicle characters in an alternate, fictional way has been in development for over a year. It is planned to be distributed by CAW Studios in association with Flyball Studios, produced by L/B Productions. Bambrough and Lacroix envision it as being an epic series with upwards of ten episodic films. It will include a huge voice cast (which hasn’t been announced yet), numerous sets constructed of Lego, and many complex characters, both physically and emotionally. The films are planned to be feature length, something Flyball Studios hasn’t done yet. It may depend on the success of Zombie Attack 7 as to whether or not the Bionicle films will be feature length or not. As of April 2013, the script is underway according to Bambrough, and the ideas are there, but it’s a question of whether or not the technology will be able to sustain the vision. The proposed method of filming is primarily stop motion, with some live action. Test sets were constructed but then demolished, and a few minutes of opening sequence were shot but not completed. Bambrough has expressed interest in pursuing a story about the mechanical toy RoboRaptor coming to life and attacking someone. At first he saw it as a horror film, but now could see it as being a chance at some comedic dialogue and ironic, black humour. He has yet to get backing for the film, but says he’d like to get it made eventually. It was rumoured early in May 2013 that a second Godzilla Tribute was in the works. Bambrough spoke about the project, saying nothing had been done yet but he would be interested in pursuing it, as he had found a song he thought would mesh very well with footage of Godzilla. Details on the project note the video would be much shorter than the 2010 Godzilla tribute, running roughly 3 minutes, and contain footage of only the millennium series Godzilla films, as Bambrough would soon have access to footage from all six films. The latest updates on the tribute have been vague, stating it may be as far away as May 2014. This month would make sense, as to coincide with the release of the latest U.S. Godzilla reboot.